Howdy, folks. Sometimes it is easy to assemble a « fortnight » feature, sometimes not. This time it has not been that easy, I don’t know why. I tried to vary tempos, origin, labels, and I am not sure I did succeed. Only your visits and interest could say I was O.K.

First in this new serie, CECIL CAMPBELL, backed by the Tennessee Ramblers. He was steel player (born 1911) in the Virginia/North Carolina region, and found moderate but constant success with his records on RCA-Victor. Here I’ve chosen his 1951 « Spookie Boogie« ; he explains in his own words what he wanted to do with this tune:

Cecil Campbell

He was looking for an « …unusual hollow type of rattling sound designed to send cold chills rushing down the spine. » He couldn’t find that sound on the musical instruments. But as fate would have it, one of the members of the Tennessee Ramblers had false teeth and that mysterious sound that appears on the tune « Spooky Boogie » was made by a pair of chattering false teeth. » Later on, he was to have a minor Rockabilly classic in 1957 on M-G-M (12487) called « Rock and Roll Fever« .

From Kentucky comes now JIMMIE OSBORNE, the « Kentucky Folk Singer ». He had a string of releases on KING, with strong success, among them the amusing « Automobile baby« . Osborne played the Louisiana Hayride, as well as the Opry, until his suicide in 1957, at the early age of 35.

Jimmie Osborne

On to Texas. FRED CRAWFORD is a relatively well-known artist, whose 9 Starday singles were of constantly highest musical level. « Cornfed Fred », as he liked to be called, was a long-time D.J. on KERB radio station of Kermit, and considered himself more a radio man than an artist. Here below is « You Gotta Wait« , a very nice 1954 Bopper. He later went to D, and committed a pop song, « By The Mission Walls », whose main claim to fame is the backing by no one but Buddy Holly.

Fred Crawford

Then TEXAS BILL STRENGTH, who had on Coral Records « Paper Boy Boogie« . Another version does exist by Tommy Trent on Checker 761 from 1952. I don’t know which one came first. The song was even revived by Hank Williams as a demo. Strength (1928-1973) had a long carreer, beginning on radio KTHT, Houston, in 1944, and recording for 4 Star, Capitol, Sun and Nashville. He re-recorded « Paper Boy Boogie » on Bangar as late as 1965.

During the Sixties, ARK records from Cincinnati did issue many a fine disc, mainly in Bluegrass or Sacred. In a past fortnight I included a Jimmy Murphy song, which I consider one of his best, « I Long To Hear Hank Sing The Blues« . Here we have a pseudonym, and there is not any chance, I’m afraid, to discover who really was TEXAS SLIM. A very superior double-sided « When I’m old And Gray » and « Look What You Gone And Done To Me » (ARK # 309). Stunning association of banjo and steel. Hear it!